Kristaps Porzingis is an imposing sight for the unacquainted, so Karl-Anthony Towns' initial impression was an understandable reaction to a 7-3 Latvian.

"I've never had to look up at somebody," the 6-11 Towns about their time together at the NBA draft. "So I was fairly surprised to not be the tallest person in the room."

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Towns witnessed that height in action on Wednesday, as a clash between the NBA's top rookies quickly evolved into a block party for Porzingis, a Carmelo Anthony gem and a Knicks victory at the Garden, 107-102, over the young Timberwolves.

Rookies Karl-Anthony Towns (r.) of the Timberwolves and Knicks' Kristaps Porzingis fight for position under the glass. Towns scores 25 points, but Porzingis' seven blocks help the Knicks get the win. (Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

Porzingis logged seven blocks – including two emphatic rejections of Towns attempts — complementing Anthony's near triple-double (20 points, 15 rebounds, nine assists) and Arron Afflalo's scoring surge (29 points). If the two early frontrunners for Rookie of the Year engage in a career rivalry – as the pregame narrative suggested — Round 1 went to Towns statistically and in the win column to Porzingis. New York's prized rookie rebounded from a difficult three-game road trip to score 11 points with six boards at home, but struggled in the second half and shot 4-of-14 overall.

Towns, the No. 1 pick in June and a Piscataway, N.J., product, countered with 25 points and 10 rebounds, ultimately outplaying his counterpart. But the game ended with Porzingis blocking Towns' 3-point shot at the buzzer, and a Knicks' victory.

"You're going to see this guy for the next 12 years, so get used to it," T-Wolves coach Sam Mitchell said of the two rookies.

Towns envisions a longer rivalry.

"He's talented and proved it again in this game," the T-Wolves rookie said. "I can't wait to be playing against him for the next 20 years plus."

The Knicks (12-14) caught a little break Wednesday because the T-Wolves (9-16) had played the night before in Minnesota, and landed in New York at around 2 a.m. Thursday. Kevin Garnett was inactive, resting for the second game of a back-to-back.

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Derek Fisher's squad, meanwhile, had three days off for the first time this season, and it jumped on the visitors to take a 20-point lead into halftime.

Minnesota, led by Towns and Andrew Wiggins (23 points), came back from a 22-point third-quarter deficit and hung around down the stretch, eventually closing the gap to three, but watched as Afflalo and Anthony nailed six straight free throws in the final 30 seconds.

Ricky Rubio came impressively close to a quadruple-double, with nine points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds and eight steals for Minnesota. Afflalo's season-high output led all scorers.

The Knicks used a heavy dose of Porzingis at center, with starter Robin Lopez limited to 18 minutes. It translated into a night where they had fewer points in the paint (28) but more assists (28) and foul shots (they hit 25 of 30).

"There are nights where it works well for us," Fisher said. "Kris' shot-blocking abilities and his ability to rebound allows us to do it, because he can play bigger than his frame. I think we are still searching offensively (for how we can take advantage of him at the center spot."

"It's a faster pace game, a little bit more spacing," he said. "When K.P. is out there there's going to be some mismatches because the big man is away from the basket. It opens up lanes to drive to the basket for everybody else."